Is anyone aware of a recording of this great Tom Paxton song? I have 3 of Tom's songbooks and it is in one, but there's no mention of it in the discography. I also have several of his tapes/CDs.There is a group of people here in OK who have formed a Deep Fork River preservation society. They are not aware of the song and I want to introduce it to them. Perhaps more verses can be written and it could become their theme song. Tom Paxton will in OK in June for the Woody Guthrie Free Fair.I do recall that I had (maybe still have, if only I can find it) a 'field recording' of the Deep Fork River Blues. It was done by Sandy and Caroline for me a Pinewoods in 1991. It is very special to me because Sandy saw me looking closely at his left hand and in the next verse he sang, "Am Am Dm, Am Dm E7. Am Dm Am, Dm E7 and back to Am."

I dunno' which Paxton it might be on, but off the top of my head, its on Rick Fielding's latest album, "This One's the Dreamer." Rick says he learned it from Sandy and was surprised to find it was a Paxton song....thought it was much older.

I made some inadvertent changes to the song over the years, having learned it in the 60s from Tom's first record. Rick made a few more changes when he recorded it on his Borealis CD. Sure hope Tom's cool about folks who man(person)handle his creative work! Actually, I asked him about the song at a festival we did in Wisconsin a few years back, and he allowed that he almost never sings it anymore. Too bad. It's a good and very folk-like song.

Side 1 of the LP has actually got seven songs. On my copy, the cover lists only six, omitting "Deep Fork River Blues." The LP label also lists six, but it includes DFRB and omits "One Time and One Time Only."

You're right. I had forgotten that "Deep Fork" was on that album. I just dug out the cassette dub that I have and there's the song at the end of Side 2. That Gaslight LP is very rare. It was pressed in a very limited quantity and it was only a few years ago that I got a dub of the LP.

Tom sent me an e-mail saying my version passed muster. Pleased me no end. The verse I left out was "sure gonna have a rabbit for my dinner". Since I couldn't kill an animal (and only selected people) I thought I could drop it.

Phil...that was "Deep River Blues". It was a Delmore Bros. song and the correct title was "Big River Blues".

Tom Paxton recorded DEEP FORK RIVER BLUES on his album "I'm the Man Who Built the Bridges" (1962). It's also on "Outward Bound/Morning Again"—that's 2 LPs from 1966 and 1968 reissued as one CD in 2004. I heard these words in a sample:

Oh, the Deep Fork is a muddy river Near my home, near my home The Deep Fork is a muddy river Near my home....

*Side 1 of the LP has actually got seven songs. On my copy, the cover lists only six, omitting "Deep Fork River Blues." *The LP label also lists six, but it includes DFRB and omits "One Time and One Time Only."

But I'm looking at my copy of that LP and there are only six tracks on Side 1, and both cover and label list the same six songs, both including One Time And One Time Only as track 5, neither listing DFRB. Are there really different versions of that LP?